Russia tests Burevestnik nuclear missile, military says

Russia has tested a nuclear-powered Burevestnik cruise missile, Moscow’s top general said.

“We launched a multi-hour flight of a nuclear-powered missile and it traveled a distance of 14,000 km (8,700 miles), which is not the limit,” Chief of the General Staff Valery Gerasimov told President Vladimir Putin in a televised meeting.

The low-flying experimental weapon, first announced in 2018, was hailed as having a potentially unlimited range and the ability to evade missile defenses.

Western experts have previously expressed doubt about the missile’s strategic value and Russian claims to have successfully tested it.

Putin said “last successful test” of the weapon was held in 2023, but the claim could not be independently confirmed. Of at least 13 known tests, only two have been partially successful since 2016, according to a gun control campaign group.

Gen. Gerasimov said the missile was in the air for 15 hours during the Oct. 21 test.

He said the missile’s vertical and horizontal maneuvering capabilities were tested and found to meet specifications, according to Russia’s TASS news agency.

“Therefore, it demonstrates high capabilities to bypass anti-missile and anti-aircraft defense systems,” said Gen. Gerasimov, TASS reported.

The missile’s usefulness has been the subject of intense debate in military and defense circles since it was first announced in 2018.

A 2021 report by the US Air Force’s National Air and Space Intelligence Center concluded: “A nuclear-powered cruise missile would give Russia a unique weapon with intercontinental range.”

However, as the International Institute for Strategic Studies (IISS) noted that year, Russia faces significant challenges to make the weapon viable.

“Its entry into Russia’s inventory likely depends not only on overcoming the significant technical challenge of ensuring reliable operation of the nuclear engine,” the IISS analysts wrote.

“There were numerous failed flight tests and an accident that resulted in several deaths.”

Russian military magazine cited in IISS report claims the missile has a range of between 10,000 and 20,000 km, allowing “the missile to be based anywhere in Russia and still be able to reach targets in the continental United States.”

The same magazine also said the missile could fly 50 to 100 meters above the ground, making it difficult for air defenses to intercept.

The missile, dubbed Skyfall by NATO, is believed to be powered by a nuclear reactor that must be activated after solid-fuel rocket boosters launch it into the air.

Ann a Reuters investigation last year identified a facility 475 km (295 miles) north of Moscow as the likely launch site for the weapon.

Using satellite images from August 2024, analyst Decker Evellett told Reuters he identified nine horizontal launch pads under construction at the site.